Apple Suspends Online Book and Movie Services in China

Shoppers and pedestrians walk across a footbridge near an Apple Inc. store at an open air shopping mall in Beijing, China, on Sunday, March 6, 2016.
Photo:
Bloomberg News

Apple Inc. has suspended its online book and movie services in China as it seeks a way to comply with the country’s stringent new content regulations, according to people familiar with the matter. As WSJ’s Eva Dou reports:

The company pulled the services at the request of Chinese regulators, the people said.

“We hope to make books and movies available again to our customers in China as soon as possible,” Apple said in a statement Friday.

China issued broad new rules in February that banned companies with any foreign ownership from engaging in online publishing, though foreign-invested companies are allowed to cooperate with Chinese firms on individual projects with permission from authorities.